Pakistan were given another cricketing lesson when England outclassed skipper Azhar Ali and his charges by four wickets in the second one-day international to go 2-0 up in the five-match series at Lord’s on Saturday evening. Joe Root’s composed 89 led England to an easy victory, chasing target of 252. England opener Jason Roy fell to the second ball of the innings, bowled by Mohammad Amir, but Root looked in complete control from the start while Eoin Morgan made 68 including nine fours. Ben Stokes chipped in with 42 and although England lost wickets at regular intervals, they reached their target with more than two overs to spare. Like the first ODI in Southampton, Pakistan, once again, made too many mistakes and allowed the hosts to overwhelm them. Pakistan were below-par in all three departments. They didn’t bowl in good areas and were too short in the beginning which allowed the in-form English batsmen to reach home. Pakistan recovered from a dreadful start, thanks to a century by Sarfraz Ahmed, to post a respectable total before Root and captain Morgan shared a third-wicket stand of 112 to lay the platform for the hosts to take lead in the series. Branded as ‘behind the times’ by their coach Mickey Arthur, Pakistan, despite a tremendous century from Sarfraz, never fully recovered. Their final total was well below par on a very good surface for batting. When one is defending a total of around 250 plus one needs to be disciplined in bowling and fielding. 250 plus runs just aren’t enough in modern cricket. Sarfraz played sensibly in the circumstances and found another reliable partner in Imad Wasim as the wicketkeeper hit six fours on the way to a second one-day international century before he was out for 105. Wasim finished unbeaten on 63. Sarfraz, with his second ODI century, posted half-century partnerships for the fourth, fifth and sixth wickets. Having also made a half-century in the first ODI in Southampton, he recorded his highest ODI score at Lord’s, overtaking his unbeaten 101 against Ireland at Adelaide during the 2015 World Cup, as well as recording the highest score made by a Pakistan wicketkeeper in an ODI in England. It was also the first century by a Pakistan batsman in an ODI at Lord’s. The previous highest was 88, made by Mohammad Yousuf against Australia in 2004. There were 61 singles in Sarfraz’s innings. Pakistan looked very weak in comparison to that of England. Pakistan’s first three batsmen could only manage one run between them. They lacked a power-hitter down the order, while there are hardly any wicket-takers apart from Amir and Wahab Riaz, but they also were struggling. So comfortable was England’s chase that, once Root had reached 14, he did not strike another boundary until he had made 75. There were, in all, 53 singles in his innings. None of the Pakistan batsmen looked confident. They remained confused and under pressure through out their innings and ultimately let their team lost the opportunity to level the series. The ODI contests against England have emphatically underlined the team’s shortcomings – exposing the batting’s brittleness and the limitations of leadership harshly and more prominently. It was not just the defeat, but rather the manner in which it came about that has infuriated fans. There is no point in making excuses. They played like a bunch of novices. Pakistan never looked a front line cricketing nation. So clueless, so inept and so devoid of spirit the fight was that one could easily associate Pakistan with the minnows. There was absence of game plan and lack of thought and application. A bold and aggressive approach is the only option for Pakistan to earn self respect in the shorter version of the game. But with the kind of approach and form they are playing ODIs, one would not be surprised if they fail to qualify for the next World Cup.